OLYMPIA — The federal government shutdown threatens to cut off critical nutrition support for more than 212,000 Washington residents within weeks, state health officials warned Wednesday.

Washington's Women, Infants, and Children program faces a funding crisis that could force closure as soon as one to two weeks into the shutdown, according to the state Department of Health. State officials estimate the program can sustain benefits for approximately two weeks based on normal usage patterns.

"This federal shutdown will have a very real impact on families and communities in Washington state," said Brittany Tybo, director of the Office of Nutrition Services at the Department of Health. "The services that WIC provides reduce infant deaths, improve the growth of infants and children, increase

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